A Snapshot
by Adventure-Seeking-Juliet
Summary: AU. Severus Snape never told Voldemort about the prophecy.


**A Snapshot**

Written by: Adventure-Seeking-Juliet

Disclaimer: I don't own_ Harry Potter._

A/N: This was written for Round Nine of QLFC, where I play second beater for the Kenmare Kestrals. However, I am writing this story on behalf of our Seeker (who has gone awol.) We're in the market for a reserve seeker, so if anyone's interested, let me know via review or private message.

Summary: AU. Severus Snape never told Voldemort about the prophecy.

_Warning(s)_: This story is a snapshot of life directly after the first wizarding war. I've decided to take the point of view that since Voldy didn't hear of the prophecy, it didn't come to pass. In the story, Voldemort actively searched for (and tried to kill Harry) which, in turn, made them equals. Harry was the only one who could stop him, but, in this AU, Voldemort had no reason to seek Harry out, thus rendering the prophecy null and void. (Think of the whole..."prophecy only fortells one possible outcome" theory.) _Also_, _this story alludes to a sexual relationship between Remus/Sirius. I actually ship Remus with Tonks, but I like to entertain the idea that, before Tonks, he loved Sirius. Since Sirius was never imprisoned, they're in a relationship. I know some people aren't into that, so I'm warning you now. (It's not graphic, there's just an innuendo!) _Last thing, I promise, this isn't a_ happy_ snapshot. It shows the pros and cons of the chosen course of action.

* * *

_The Potters_

"Dadada," Harry squealed, happily clapping his hands together.

Lily's eyes widened, "Oh, James, hurry! I think he's about to say his first word!"

There was a muffled curse and a series of crashing sounds from the back of the house, but just as Lily was about to go check on her foolhardy husband, he came running around the corner. His glasses were skewed and his hair was a mess, but he looked more excited than she'd ever seen him before.

"Did I miss it?" He asked, pausing to kiss his wife on the cheek, "I've been waiting for this moment my entire life!"

"Don't you think you're being a bit melodramatic?" Lily quipped, smirking.

James muttered something under his breath, then turned his attention to little Harry, who was still babbling away.

"Come on, little man. I know you can do it this time!"

Harry stared up at his father with wide eyes, then continued to babble, "Dadada-"

"Yes!" James cried, scooping Harry into his arms, "His first word is going to be Dad! I can tell."

Lily laughed, "I wouldn't be so sure, James."

"Dadadada," Harry said again. His little hand were stretched out, like he was reaching for something.

"Yes?" James asked, placing his wand on the couch, "Dad! That's me. _Dad_."

Harry shook his head, his chubby little hand still stretched out, "Waaandd."

"Wand?" James repeated, dumbfounded.

Sure enough, Harry seemed to be reaching for his discarded wand.

James sighed, "You've got to be kidding me! _Wand_?"

Lily placed a kiss on her husband's cheek, "Told you so."

* * *

_Sirius Black and Remus Lupin_

"_Checkmate_," Sirius jumped up, "Ha! I win!"

Remus rolled his eyes, "Only because I went easy on you."

Sirius was too busy doing a victory dance to reply. It had been a long, agonizing game, but Sirius had _surprisingly,_ prevailed. Remus sat back in his chair, and smiled to himself. He'd let Sirius win, but he was never going to tell him that. He was just pleased that their friendship had managed to survive the war.

Sirius abruptly disappeared into the kitchen.

"Where are you going?" Remus called, "I demand a re-match!"

Sirius returned a moment later, two bottles of firewhiskey in his hands, "Not until after we have toasted my victory!"

Remus accepted a bottle, but chuckled to himself all the same, "Don't you think you're being a bit melodramatic?"

Sirius popped his top and took a burning gulp, "_Me_? Melodramatic? Ha! Of course not."

"Yes," Remus said, "How _silly_ of me to accuse Sirius Black of being melodramatic."

"Sarcasm's beneath you, Moony," Sirius chided, smirking.

"Yes, and as a recall, so were you last night," Remus replied, his eyebrow raised suggestively.

Sirius only shrugged.

* * *

_Severus Snape_

"I don't know how to repay you, Headmaster," Snape whispered, his voice strained from overuse. Azkaban had not treated him well.

"There is no repayment necessary, Severus," Dumbledore replied, calmly.

"But, sir, _why_?" Snape asked, "Why did you have me released? You must know of all the horrible things I did while in service to the Dark Lord."

"Indeed," Dumbledore nodded, "And that is precisely why I argued for your release."

"I don't understand," Snape replied, sounding slightly exasperated.

"I have found that the mistakes of youth do not determine the depth of a man's character," Dumbledore explained. He fixed his piercing gaze on Snape.

Severus was quiet for a moment, "Are you speaking from experience?"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, quizzically, "What gives you that impression?"

"Nothing," Snape said, quickly, "I just um-"

Dumbledore raised a hand, "It is of no consequence. As it is, Hogwarts is in desperate need of a new potions professor, and after reviewing the applicants, it's fairly obvious that you are the most qualified for the position."

Snape's eyes widened, "I don't know what to say."

Dumbledore smiled, "Then perhaps it is better if you don't say anything at all. Feel free to move into the castle at the earliest opportunity, _professor."_

* * *

_The House Elf_

Dobby had a name, but his masters only ever called him _Elf._

He hated it, but there was no way out of it.

His master had evaded Azkaban, and now, Dobby could never hope to receive his freedom.

* * *

_Hogwarts Express, September 1st, 1991_

Harry quickly hugged his mother goodbye, trying to escape before she started tearing up..._again_. She'd been teary all week, even when Harry pointed out that the twins wouldn't be leaving for school for _three whole years._

For some reason, Lily had only cried harder when Harry mentioned that. So, this time, he remained quiet. After a few minutes, she finally released him, but, to Harry's dismay, the twins immediately took her place.

Aster and Prim were completely identical in every way, and sometimes, even Harry had a hard time telling them apart. So, he hugged each little red-haired girl in turn, and just as he finished, was about to rush off to the platform, when his father caught him in a headlock.

"You weren't going to disappear without saying goodbye to your old man, were you?" He asked.

Harry grinned, and James laughed at his son's guilty expression, "I understand, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let you _get away with it."_

Harry nodded, "You never do, dad."

James ruffled his son's hair, then lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper, "Alright, the cloak is in your trunk. Take goof care of it, it's a-"

"Family heirloom," Harry finished, grinning, "I know, dad."

James sighed, "Okay, okay. Don't forget that Sirius and Remus are stopping by next week to give a presentation to the prospective Auror students. They want to meet for lunch."

Harry nodded, "_I know_, dad."

James pulled Harry into a bone-crushing hug, "I'm going to miss you, junior."

Harry hugged him back, "I'm going to miss you guys, too. I'll write every week."

James smiled, "I know, kiddo. Now, hurry up, you're going to be late."

Once he was on the train, Harry found a lone compartment and took a seat. A few seconds later, two boys waked in.

"I'm Seamus," the first said, with a slight Irish accent.

"Harry. Harry Potter," Harry replied, shaking his hand.

The second boy introduced himself as Dean, and before the three of them knew it, they were talking animatedly about which houses were the best.

Of course, Gryffindor was the unanimous winner.

* * *

_Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger_

Ron ended up in an empty compartment.

His brothers had disappeared, and Ron was perfectly fine with sitting alone. It wasn't so bad.

He nibbled on some of the food his mom had packed, but when the food trolly rolled by, he couldn't help but stare at it wistfully.

Eventually, he nodded off.

He was awoken over an hour later by an annoyingly girly voice saying, "You might want to wake up. We'll be stopping in a few minutes."

He groaned, "Just a few more minutes."

The girl rolled her eyes and sat down, "I'm Hermione Granger."

Ron groaned again. _Couldn't this girl take a hint?_

"Ron Weasley."

"Pleasure," She said in tone that made it sound like anything but.

* * *

A/N If anyone's curious, I debated adding in a few more characters, but decided against it. (You probably don't care, but I'm going to tell you anyway!) Trelawney wasn't hired by Dumbledore, as her prophecy proved to be unimportant. Sirius Black eventually finds the R.A.B. note, and; as a result, the marauders and the rest of the order eventually destroy the Horcruxes. Pettigrew was outed as a traitor for supplying information to Voldemort. He ended up serving a sentence in Azkaban. The Dursleys ignored the Potters (and Dudley was as spoiled as ever.) Sirius and Remus found work as Aurors. **I'll leave the fate of the Golden Trio up to you guys. I'm curious to know about what you think would happen to their friendship! So, leave a review and I'll check it out! **Sorry for any mistakes, I wrote this fairly quickly.


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